Voter apathy the big winner

Published
5:45 pm EST, Thursday, November 5, 2015

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Hour Letters to the Editor

Hour Letters to the Editor

Voter apathy the big winner

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To the Editor:

To the surprise of no one, Norwalk Democrats -- that is, the few that voted on Tuesday -- reigned supreme at the polls, taking most of the seats that were up for grabs. Incumbent Mayor Rilling easily defeated his Republican opponent Kelly Straniti, getting 7,889 votes to Kelly's 4,624, according to The Hour.

Since the city's registered Democrats outnumber the Republicans two to one, it's usually a slam dunk for those on the left. Kelly distinguished herself in one respect: She received a high percentage of Republican votes, a tribute to her pavement pounding for several months. Who knows what the 18,561 "unaffiliated" voters were up to? Certainly not so much.

To be sure, there is nothing to crow about here. The real winner is Voter Apathy. The right to vote the loser. A paltry 28 percent of Norwalk's 44,313 registered voters took the time to go to the polls. The only absolute statistic -- and an embarrassingly sordid one indeed -- is that 72 percent of those registered to vote don't care who represents them in the city.

For those who do care, these numbers will infuriate you, not "set you free" as the accountants say. For example, according to the 2015 census, more than 40,000 of Norwalk's citizens have a four-year college degree or higher. This means that even the ostensibly smart folks don't much give a damn what goes on in the city. They must have skipped their civics lessons.

Still, Norwalk should feel good about one thing. Bridgeport voted in a convicted felon.